Strange Is As Strange Does [2 Guys Buying Comics]
Neat essay about the good Doctor, with a call for a new balls-out, dark, scary horror monthly in the Lovecraftian vein (the Marvel Premiere run in the 01970's was inspired by Lovecraft). Neilalien's called for an occult-investigator Doc on severaloccasions himself. Stephen King even suggested as a writer. "Let's tear some supernatural shit up!" Thanks too for the kind words about this website, 2 Guys!
Update: They're also ripping Defenders #2 a new one.

We're all fans in this together wanting some good comics [Focused Totality] [via The Beat]
The comics blogosphere will eat itself, what with all the bickering among manga flagwavers, Marvel/DC-superhero flagwavers, and those most-insufferable indy comics flagwavers.

When the first Spider-Man movie premiered shortly after 9/11, writers began postulating about society's need for heroes at that point in history, acting as if the sight of Kirsten Dunst in a wet T-shirt wouldn't have been a box office draw in the summer of 2001. In the ensuing four years, however, superhero art has proliferated greatly in the realms of the visual arts, film, and literature. Compound presents an exhibition of artists working within that theme from Hong Kong, Japan, and the US.

1972's "Spider-Man: From Beyond the Grave" was a half story / half rock album telling the tale of Spidey and Dr. Strange teaming up to save Peter Parker's Aunt May from the clutches of the Kingpin! The music was all over the map, from wah-wah-driven acid rock to bubblegum doo-wop (the album featured the vocal stylings of Ron Dante, "lead singer" of cartoon legends the Archies) and Dixieland pop. But the dialogue was worthy of Mamet, featuring nuggets such as, "Can the small talk, fat man and let's get it on!"

As an industry, comics are now standing at the intersection between hip, independent art and multi-billion dollar pop culture dominance, and there can truly be no better place to be. With so much attention from Hollywood and the mainstream press, awareness of the medium is at an all time high and all eyes are on comics... But, let's face it, it hasn't been the comic stores that are reaping the rewards... With everyone but the direct market retailers cashing in on funnybooks we run a very real risk of losing something that I think has the most potential to be really, truly awe-inspiring and great... and that's comic book stores. Because comic book stores are where our culture is created. They act as the nexus of an artform that walks the line between the underground and mainstream, and play host to a massive variety of creatively-minded people from all walks of life. Teeming with raw creative energy and an appreciation for innovative art and unique stories, the comic store environment has the potential to marry the cutting edge with the mass market. And as those comic retail outlets themselves are the single most visible public face of our industry to the world at large, it's time we give them some faces that the public is excited to see. It's time to up the ante and take comic retailing to the next level.

Neilalien highly recommends Top 10: The Forty-Niners; OGN makes the world all better [high praise at Fourth Rail] [annotations]
Wait to check it out in paperback only if you must. It's so good and reminding of Top 10 warm fuzzies that Neilalien will probably pick up the Top 10: Beyond The Farthest Precinct miniseries too, when before he was hesitant because Moore isn't writing it.
Update: Johnny Bacardi positively reviews Farthest Precinct, Defenders [Last Call at CBG] [ditto Hannibal Tabu]

Dr. Strange's appearances and role in House of M looking pretty sparse after all (3 panels in #5) (and we fans were worried that we'd have to buy so many books); one panel of alt-universe infected-zombie Doc in Ultimate Fantastic Four #22 [Doc appearances this week]

It can be a tough time right now to feel interested in comics if you're into the Marvel/DC superhero/industry news chunk [Ninth Art]
Boring: Same old crossoverism, more conservatism, less experimentation, the current workhorse talent's good but we know all their tricks. Randomly trying manga if you're not into manga, or trying other comics just by artform-medium-love virtue that they are comics, aren't solutions. So true. But this is a dangerous ennui that we dare not tolerate or indulge. Neilalien feels like he's under an information overload crunch of recommended comic books and good comic book news: Why doesn't Paul O'Brien?Update: Apathy only ruined me [Grim Tidings]
Neilalien didn't expect O'Brien's column to break the internet in half, and he's with Fanboy Rampage's Graeme on this one. O'Brien's not "just reading the wrong comics". People like what they like, and they want to like it.

"Comics are certainly having an international moment, in terms of both sales figures and increased literary respect" [Newsweek]
Marjane Satrapi's graphic novel Persepolis is required reading at West Point to help cadets understand Iran.

As the '60s whirled its antagonistic tango of tradition and rebellion, I sat in oblivious distraction, my attention focused between the covers of Marvel comic books: Thor, Iron Man, Daredevil, Sub-Mariner, Nick Fury, Silver Surfer, Doctor Strange. Stan Lee's alliterative and dramatic excesses (along with Jack Kirby's and Steve Ditko's visual renderings) furrowed my brain-field, preparing it for later seedings that would one day bloom into appreciations of Dostovesky, Proust, Kafka, and Mann...

I wonder what the cultural landscape would look like had more young imaginations been "corrupted" by funny books? Maybe our rulers - political and corporate - would not be so egoistic and malignant had they been exposed to and humbled by comics' engendering of zen-like wonder and galactic perspective.

YAY! Judge says NYC punk landmark CBGB's can't be evicted [USA Today]
But a lease renewal past 31 August is still undetermined. Many great upcoming benefit shows, including the Misfits-lite tomorrow night, Vandals, Dead Boys, Living Colour, Circle Jerks, Sham 69, etc., although to get tickets at this point you'll want to show up early the day of. See you there, Neilalienistas! [Ticketweb] [important ticketing info at Brooklynvegan]

Baseball-card sales have plunged 15 percent annually during the past five years; an industry reshuffles to recapture its youth [Christian Science Monitor] [via Kottke]
Blogged because it feels like a comic news piece, and of course, Perelman's ill-fated purchase of baseball card companies when he controlled Marvel.

Hilarious spoof of a comics mailing list that you might be on [Gutterninja]

If Wizard Magazine truly loved comics, it wouldn't try to crush HeroesCon, it would cover more than superhero collectibles, "indie" Wizard Edge wouldn't be a Kevin-Smith-covering joke [Mike Weiringo quoted at Fanboy Rampage]

Annual ICv2 interview with DC President and Publisher Paul Levitz [Part 1; state of the market] [Part 2; graphic novels vs. periodicals] [Part 3; comic movies a bubble?]
Response: It boggles the mind just how clueless the people creating Marvel/DC superhero periodicals are about the graphic novels and the manga; indies can't win cuz going mainstream means losing their cachet and success means getting the life sucked out of it like punk rock [The Beat]
Response: Levitz: We're Doing Just Great, Thanks [Comics Reporter]
Synthesis with Warren Ellis' latest musings on how bad things are getting, tiny sales numbers for so many books, tiny numbers of comics stores, the struggle getting good comics seen by interested eyes [Fanboy Rampage]

Recent Doc Sightings

Marvel Team-Up #11
The Titannus storyline seems to be climaxing. Dr. Strange does his tired old 'Defenders/Team-Up, detect bad guys, recruit good guys, astral form and teleport' spiel, but Kirkman generally does a good job with Doc's characterization. Doc's on the cover, cool- but he's uncharacteristically emotionally yelling as he's throwing himself at the villain. Eh.

The New Avengers #7
A multipart story about The Sentry begins, with Doc part of the advisory braintrust against all the newly-freed villains. First off: Iron Man's armor detects "four humanoid life forms and an astral energy projection" in attendance. Bullshit! No mundane technology should be able to detect Doc's astral form. Grrr. With the story starting off like that, how does Bendis expect Doc fans to actually try to follow this Sentry 'let's bring comic writer Paul Jenkins along' meta story? [Double Articulation review re: metafiction] Fun New Avengers vs. The Wrecker fight though. He's of course no brainiac, but he held his own. It delights Neilalien when third-string supervillains (and superheroes, for that matter) are shown acting with some competence (more than usual; see: Rhino, Marvel Team-Up #11, above).

Comic books were my childhood companions. Through the pages of the Fantastic Four and Spiderman and Dr. Strange, I entered worlds I never dreamed were possible. Ultimately, all comic books have a 'sense of wonder'... a sort of 'what if' quality that attracted me. Then. And now.

Recent con game reveals an industry that resents kissing up to Wizard and the lack of alternatives to it [Ninth Art]

18-year-old "In My Opinion" columns held hopes for graphic novels, bemoaned lack of girl comics, ranted against anti-fun continuity crush [Gutterninja]
Is nothing new? And you thought we were all just rehashing Warren Ellis' Come In Alone columns from five years ago.

Plenty of "fun" superhero comics out there right now if you don't want to see rapes [Gutterninja]

In Depth: David Yurkovich's Less Than Heroes [Graphic Novel Review (from January)]
David Yurkovich Talks Less Than Heroes [Comic Book Resources (from April 02004)]
Neilalien found some unblogged bookmarks for one of his faves. (These links would only be 'old' in 'internet time', or if they weren't for a GN but instead for a book in the monthly churn.)

New She-Hulk series starts in October [Marvel October solicits on Newsarama]
Just learned that Juan Bobillo is doing the art- great news! His art is perfection for these series. More Awesome Andy! Dan Slott's first She-Hulk series took Neilalien completely by surprise and was a total joy. Neilalien's eye on Slott has wandered since then- GLA does nothing for him, maybe it was the uninspiring choice of characters used (although Slott overcame that with the previously uninteresting She-Hulk). Spider-Man/Human Torch was a "pivotal, sentimental, optimistic and fun" ride, especially #4. Ty Templeton's art was perfect for that series too.
Ty Templeton interview; "These were comics which were intended to be FUN" [Silver Bullet]

An Open Letter to the Guys that Check the Spine of Every Comic Before they Pick Out the Most Perfect One to Purchase, Bag, and Board [Listen To Us, We're Right]

Congratulations to Rocketship! Friday night's opening was a great time.

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